ifenes:


You do realize that Atheism is anti-existence of a creator god. And free thinking is the ability to think without belief system blocking your level of thoughts.I would personally say free thoughts is formed based on personal opinion,logic and reasoning. What is not Free-thinking is thoughts formed based on religion,tradition and culture or political views.

You are right in a way that Atheism is not free thinking. Well, many atheist I have had met on nairaland are still subjected to traditional,authorities and political views,hence not really free thinkers. But an Atheist is more likely to have more free thoughts on general issues.

Regarding religion,free thinkers think there isn't enough evidence to support the existence of a god.Blind faith is a no no because it is subjected to respecting authorities like;parental views,community views on god.

Event scientifically,some people have no proof themselves but are subjected to the scientific books. I personally do not agree with 50% of what science books say. Why? Because I reason with every bit of information most times.

My views on Homosexuality is the same. Is it possible for someone to be gay? If you ask 10 Christians,they will most likely say No,Atheists may give a mixed view,some negative due to Traditional influence or family,while a true free thinker will say yes.

Another question is the rights of women. you will find lots of Atheist basing their decision of women being 2nd class to a man due to Cultural/traditional reasons. Basically means free thinkers ain't that much. But one thing is right,A true christian is no free thinker.

I quite agree with a substantial part of ur Post, Buh for clarity sakes..I'd like to point out somewhere u might av gone off-course.
The fact that I reasoned out and scrutinised some political, traditional or religious views and be subjected to some of them doesn't take away the virtue of free thinking from me..it's the process by which I arrived at my Conclusion at dat given point in time dat makes me a freethinker, not my conformity to any primordial belief of some sort; that wud be happenstance.
Freethinking doesn't necessarily av to derive alien views always..it only separates dogma from reasoning. Definitely, not every law set in times past came out of dogma and freethinkers av always existed sinx time immemorial.
I noticed we all in dis thread tend to juxtapose Atheism and free thought to educe some contrast Btw both. I fink that's where misconceptions stem from.
Atheists, skeptics, deists, gnostics, agnostics etc. are all affixed to perspectives to issues that bothers on religion. However, freethinking, relatively, encompasses all aforementioned(even on any subject at that), provided the thought process is free of dogma.
An atheist can almost always be a freethinker, but a freethinker don't need to be an atheist. He can be anybody but a religionist.

promise10:

What about conscience?

Do you have conscience? Is conscience visible? Why believe in the invisible conscience? Is that NOT FAITH? This is why atheism is rot with dishonesty!

Would you judge the reality of conscience on the basis of the rights and wrongs people do?

When you see people who are SO WICKED BEYOND your imagination. Would you conclude that there is nothing like conscience.

Dishonesty the foundation of atheism!

I actually don't like quoting u coz u always let ur emotion override ur intellect weneva u comment on topics such as this but I'm being tempted to quote u here..
apologies in advance
Conscience is simply the term we give to the intangible resource that governs our morality. It neither require faith nor some sort of religious belief init, to determine where one stands on issues like dis. Infact, it's got nothing, exclusively, to do with religion.
So, dont equate it to a debate of the existence of a God owing to a lack of tangible evidence; from the Atheist perspective.



Yes, a wicked person has a conscience, everybody does. Just that he(the wicked person) has a bad one.

donnffd:


I think you first have to define what God is...

Atheists dont claim there are absolute no Gods, because God is a relative term, so when you start the conversation, you have to define God.

Some people take money as God, well obviously God exists in that scenario and i can believe in that.

Einstein said God is the summation of the laws of physics, i agree because there is evidence, so God exists.

Christians say God is a spaceless, timeless, immaterial intelligent being, No evidence for that God, so belief is withheld.

I really dont see how this process affects how i am a free thinker

You have forgotten to add that,:
There is another, the "god of self" the devotees are usually educated and intellectually above average.

The god of self is actually a part of the trinity of Satan, Rebellion and Self.

shadeyinka:


You have forgotten to add that,:
There is another, the "god of self" the devotees are usually educated and intellectually above average.

The god of self is actually a part of the trinity of Satan, Rebellion and Self.

Lol...i believe God is a relative term, and so if someone asks me if i dont believe in God, i ask him to define God.

I really dont understand the concept of a God of self, but if it has to do with satan who in my opinion is a fictional character, then i think this god of self is also fictional, but i might be wrong, so please enlighten me more on this god of self.

promise10:

What about conscience?

Do you have conscience? Is conscience visible? Why believe in the invisible conscience? Is that NOT FAITH? This is why atheism is rot with dishonesty!

Would you judge the reality of conscience on the basis of the rights and wrongs people do?

When you see people who are SO WICKED BEYOND your imagination. Would you conclude that there is nothing like conscience.

Dishonesty the foundation of atheism!

The bible has ALREADY provided recipes for making contact with its god. It contains numerous examples of how it's resident god was revealed to atheists and unbelievers. The apostles didn't ask atheists if they could see the wind, or smell their conscience.

You're only bringing up this conscience business because you have tried to replicate the way they proved god in the Bible. And failed. Just like everyone.
Read your bible. It should be easy to produce a manifestation of your claims. Everyone in the Bible did it somehow.
In fact, we have Nairalanders who have revived multiple dead Nigerians in the name of the Bible god. Talk to those people and see they can extend the power of the Bible god to a public audience.